I Hopped Off the Plane at LAX with a Dream and My Cardigan...

 

 

 

See what I did there? I actually have a cardigan on too.  What a first day! 9 hours before takeoff, my flight was cancelled and rescheduled for half an hour earlier. I got nowhere near enough sleep...probably three hours in all, and I was the most tired when we got up this morning. Both kids bounded awake, and I as usual took the longest to get functioning. Made it into FWA easy-breezy and in-and-out of Detroit just fine until I landed in LAX. Then the adventure began...in more than one way.

 

A word of advice: pay the extra money to get a rental car from a dealership you know. I found a company that quoted me $400-500 less than the other major chains for the same seven-odd weeks of renting.  So, I waited for the shuttle to come around, and after awhile, I checked the sign and every major brand was listed but this one. So, I called the number, and I was supposed to have known this already (obviously)...I was supposed to take the shuttle/bus to "Parking Lot C" and "look for the cell phone waiting area." That's all the direction I was given, and miraculously, the bus came pretty quickly after that.

 

Upon reaching the parking lot, I was directed by the bus driver to go sit on a bench until the shuttle came from the car rental agency. I felt like Forrest Gump minus the box of chocolates.  After twenty-plus minutes, I called their agency to find out where the shuttle was...since they were 1.6 miles away from my location at that moment, I was stunned as to why I hadn't been picked up yet. So, after two calls, they eventually showed up, and drove me to the dealership. Once there, oh boy, once there they couldn't figure out the quoted estimate that I had online. They wanted me to pay $400+ more (on top of my online confirmed price) for their car. Ummm...I have an online reservation for "this" quote, I think I should get the car for this quote.  An HOUR later, they figured out how to manipulate the numbers to get me the agreed upon pricing. They were really sweet and nice, and I never lost my temper, which kind of amazed me. What schedule am I on? None, really.

 

So, once I had my car, I commenced driving around town. I drove for a few hours and miraculously got 35 mpg in city travel with a handful of interstate travel too. Not too shabby. Oh, and no power windows, or power locks either. Just like back home with my good old Neon. I saw a few of the sites, but I did not get out and park. Everything costs a fortune to park, and I drove all around looking for a free parking space (I'm cheap, get used to it!). In a drive-by fashion, the Grauman's Chinese Theatre looked cool, and literally, it was like a Times Square meets Gatlinburg vibe for the few blocks surrounding the theater on both sides. I drove out to the Santa Monica Pier, but again, I didn't want to pay the parking price for the last few hours of daylight. It looked gorgeous though, and I think I'll splurge for it someday and do it right.

 





 

 Other random observations/thoughts of the day, and in no particular order:
1. I couldn't find Diet Mountain Dew at any of the pop machines that I checked throughout the day.
2. Oh, yeah, and it's not "pop" either, it's "soda." Not too shocked by that though.
3. Gas is $3.99-$4.40 at different gas stations within a few miles of each other, weird.
4. You can buy booze/beer on Sunday. Again, not a real shock. It shows how weird Indiana is when I think it's a big deal that you can purchase alcohol on Sunday.
5. You can buy TAB at the grocery. Seriously, TAB!

 



 6. The lanes seem to be narrower than normal, and when you're in a traffic jam...motorcycles like to blast up the lanes between the rows of cars at a very fast clip. One guy was mere inches from my mirror...which instantly made me feel like I made a mistake in not getting the coverage at the rental agency.
7. Most people have been very nice (see the above story about the rental ladies). The waiter and other business people that I came into contact with were smiling and engaging to me. Maybe they could sense my laidback vibe, or something. Regardless, they've been pretty enjoyable thus far.
8. With that said, within moments of pulling out of the car lot, I was informed by a passing motorist that I am his favorite (Number One!) driver, or at least that's what I choose to think of his hand signal.
9. And I may, or may not, have signed autographs as Matthew McConaughey for a couple of Japanese teenagers at baggage claim while I was waiting for my bags.